Abstract
Atmospheric dust is a more extreme modifier of weather and climate on
Mars than water vapor is on Earth. Global dust storms enshroud Mars in a
veil of dust for months and have major implications for past and present
climate, geologic history, habitability, and exploration. Yet their
mysterious origins mean we remain unable to realistically simulate or
predict them. In this White Paper, we find that key Knowledge Gaps are:
A. how dust is lifted; B. constraints on near-surface winds and
boundary-layer processes; C. the distribution of mobile surface dust;
and D. the key processes and feedbacks by which dust storms begin and
evolve. To make progress in the next decade, we make four
Recommendations in order of priority: #1. Properly accommodate a
minimum payload of meteorological and aeolian sensors on future Mars
surface missions; #2. Continue orbital monitoring of the evolving
surface dust distribution; #3. Expand orbital measurements to include
winds and full diurnal coverage; and #4. Continue orbital monitoring
and add surface measurements of aerosols during dust storms.